Join us for the hugely popular Dea Latis Beers with Breakfast tasting, now in its third year. Taking place on 5th December (the morning after the Guild dinner and awards), we’re hosting the event at American bar-diner Jackson & Rye in the heart of Soho, so expect pancakes, beef hash and grits. And expect some great beers to try with them (not just from America).

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Beer and women group Dea Latis hosted a beer and cheese tasting in London earlier this week, as part of its ongoing mission to encourage more women to discover the delights of our national drink.

During the tasting, guests sampled five different beer and cheese combinations, with expert guidance provided by Annabel Smith, one of the country’s only female Beer Sommeliers. They were:

Affligem Triple: Chaucers Camembert

Guinness: Organic Ashdown Foresters Smoked

Fullers ESB: Ashmore Farmhouse

Shepherd Neame Barley Wine: Kentish Blue

Bacchus Frambozen: Kellys Goats Cheese

A post-tasting vote was taken for the best beer and cheese pairing, with the Affligem-Camembert match narrowly taking top spot ahead of the Shepherd Neame Barley Wine with Kentish Blue.

Smith said, “The hallmark of a great match of beer and cheese, or indeed any food and drink, is that they enhance each other’s taste. Beer works especially well with cheese, as its natural carbonation cuts through the fattiness of cheese – which is something wine can’t do.

“There were some cracking combinations tasted today, which really showcased beer’s versatility as a match to food.”

Dea Latis – named after the Celtic goddess of beer and water – was established by a handful of women working in the brewing and pubs industry, and hosts regular beer and beer/food tastings for women.

The tasting was held in the Bishop’s Finger at Smithfield, a Shepherd Neame pub. Shepherd Neame is one of 15 corporate supporters of Dea Latis, who help to promote the group’s efforts to bring beer to women.

The next event is a Beer & Breakfast tasting on Friday 5 December in London. Put the date in your diary, more detail to follow soon.

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A group of beer-loving women is holding a beer and cheese tasting in central London next Wednesday, 8 October, to encourage more women to discover the delights of our national drink.

Dea Latis – named after the Celtic goddess of beer and water – was established by a handful of women working in pubs and breweries, and hosts regular tastings to demonstrate beer’s versatility as a partner with different foods. The beer and cheese tasting is being held on:

Date: Wednesday 8th October

Time: 3.00 – 5.00 pm

Venue: The Bishops Finger, 9-10 West Smithfield, London EC1A 9JR

Guests will be offered five different beer and cheese combinations, from goat’s cheese and fruit beer to traditional ale and cheddar. Hosting the event and explaining the beer and cheese matches is Annabel Smith, one of the country’s only female Beer Sommeliers.

Annabel says, “The hallmark of a great match of beer and cheese, or indeed any food and drink, is that they enhance each other’s taste. Beer works especially well with cheese as its natural carbonation cuts through the fattiness of cheese – which is something wine can’t do.”

Beer and cheese are great companions – as you’ll know if you’ve ever enjoyed a ploughman’s lunch with a glass of ale. We’re hoping to discover a few more great beer and cheese combinations at our tasting, with the help of a few brewers, a cheese expert and of course, our guests.

We’ll be tasting at least five different cheeses, each matched to a different beer designed to enhance the taste of both. It promises to be an entertaining and educational afternoon, at the Bishops Finger in Smithfield (our thanks to Shepherd Neame). We hope you can join us.

Try to convert cider and wine drinkers to beer- – especially women. Fewer than 15% of women in Britain are regular beer drinkers. Even a small percentage increase in women drinking beer in a pub would have a significant and positive effect on the health of the industry. However this is a huge challenge because one of the biggest reasons why women in this country do not drink beer is because they perceive it as being blokey. Many beer marketing companies do not help because they market beer just at men, making millions of people assume that beer is a man’s drink and that women are not welcome at the party. Of course we know that beer is a gift from nature to all humans! No one calls wine “female” — and it’s ludicrous to assign a gender to food or drink. But if people insist on giving beer a male gender then they should read my blog on the Huffington Post where I write about beer having more female elements than any other alcoholic drink. Read it by clicking here:

If your local pub serves food, ask the manager to include a beer suggestion to match with each dish on the menu. If they are unable to stock a wide selection of cask ales ask them to offer a wider selection of bottled beers and have a beer menu with description of style and descriptive tasting notes. Food matching is where beer has no competition!

Write to local and national newspapers and ask them to include more positive features about beer, and if those publications have a wine column, ask them to print a beer column too.

If your local or favourite brewer is beholden to New World hops, encourage them to use British hops instead. British hops are more subtle than their New World counterparts, and that subtlety permits the malts to shine too, showing off the complexity of the beer. By doing so you will help to save the British hop industry and will taste just why British malt is renowned as being the best brewing and distilling barley in the world!

Join the Beer Day Britain project to deliver the world’s greatest national beer day – 15 June 2015. And also sign a petition I have started for the British Government to serve British beer at official receptions and to be proud to showcase our peerless national drink. See details of the national beer day and petition by clicking here

Beer is such a joy-giving drink — more so than other beverage. So let’s celebrate and share it whether your favourite tipple is a pint of Spitfire, Carling or Gamma Ray. Bottoms up!

A Brazilian brewer has launched Cerveja Feminista, an ale that challenges the stereotype of beer being enjoyed by men in advertising. Read the full article from The Independent here http://tinyurl.com/o4vyuhb Do we need a feminist beer in the UK?

Dea Latis: Beers with Breakfast returns! Friday, 5th December 10.00 – midday Jackson & Rye, 56 Wardour St, Soho, London W1D 4JF Join us for the hugely popular Dea Latis Beers with Breakfast tasting, now in its third year. Taking place on 5th December (the morning after the Guild dinner and awards), we’re hosting the […]

Beer and women group Dea Latis hosted a beer and cheese tasting in London earlier this week, as part of its ongoing mission to encourage more women to discover the delights of our national drink. During the tasting, guests sampled five different beer and cheese combinations, with expert guidance provided by Annabel Smith, one of […]

A group of beer-loving women is holding a beer and cheese tasting in central London next Wednesday, 8 October, to encourage more women to discover the delights of our national drink. Dea Latis – named after the Celtic goddess of beer and water – was established by a handful of women working in pubs and […]